IHC not to restrict
ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has rejected a plea to instruct authorities against arresting PTI leader Imran Khan in any pending cases. The IHC bench explained that it is unwilling to establish such a precedent.
IHC not to restrict authorities from arresting Imran Khan.
A division bench of the high court, presided over by Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and including Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri, continued the hearing of Imran Khan’s petition. Khan challenged the revocation of his pre-arrest bail in nine separate cases, including those filed against him following the May 9 disturbances.
Numerous courts had dismissed the former prime minister’s pre-arrest bail applications because he failed to appear in court after being incarcerated following his conviction in the Toshakhana case on August 5. Imran Khan subsequently challenged these trial court decisions in the IHC.
During the hearing, Imran’s attorney, Salman Safdar, argued that the trial courts had dismissed his client’s bail requests without evaluating their merits solely because he did not attend court. He urged the bench to overturn the trial courts’ rulings.
When the counsel for Islamabad Police informed the bench that Imran Khan had not been arrested in any of the cases as yet, Safdar mentioned that his client had not yet submitted new post-arrest bail applications to the courts.
Safdar explained that Imran Khan could not physically appear in court for the pre-arrest bail hearings due to his detention at Attock Jail.
He asked the court not to instruct authorities to apprehend Imran in any of the cases until the next hearing.
In response, IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq stated that they did not want to establish such a precedent.
“We will not issue such an order. However, we can include in the order that the police have not arrested the PTI chief in any of the cases,” he remarked. The court subsequently adjourned the case until the following Thursday.
